Never Fading
by claviclebridge
Summary: There are three things that never fade: a jewelry made out of gold, tattoos on someone's skin, and true love. A story about love and how life comes in between. NO BDSM. HEA.


**Chapter 1**

" _ **Paint a picture for you and me  
Of the days when we were young  
Singing at the top of both our lungs  
On the day we fell in love" ~ Anne Marie, 2002**_

 **Year 1 – 2002**

He was reading her favourite book.

From across the table of the library, Anastasia can't help but stare at Christian for so long. The pen tapped on the table as she tried to contain her emotions. She always thought she was the only one reading the "Sunflowers by the Coast" series and now it felt like a miracle that someone's reading it too.

"Kate, Christian is reading my favourite book," Ana whispered to her best friend.

"Huh? That sunflower shit you read?"

Ana grimaced and said bitterly, "Yes, that sunflower shit."

Kate said, "Approach that nerd then and talk about it."

At fifteen years old, Ana's completely new to high school. She always knew that Kate was a mean one but she knew their friendship is genuine. Three months have passed since school started and Ana had the impression that high school was awful. She felt like a misfit if it weren't for Kate.

They always complimented her looks. She looked like a beauty queen. Her brown hair curled beautifully and blended well with her sapphire blue eyes. Her eyes glimmered especially when sunlight hit. Yet, she felt misunderstood.

She didn't want to learn about makeup, she wanted to learn about books.

She didn't talk about the newest Britney Spears song, she wanted to learn about Mozart.

In short, it felt like she belonged to a different era.

Christian, on the other hand, was often laughed at. He was too tall and skinny. His lanky frame made it seem like he lacked confidence and his glasses are too thick. Worst of all, he had a bad case of acne. There were times when his face was too oily. Boys and girls from their classroom would tell him that they can fry an egg on his face.

Considering that Christian's the richest kid in school, it didn't matter what your social status is. If you're bullied then you're bullied.

Some kids threw pieces of paper at him and he wouldn't even react. Ana would feel bad for him but never had the courage to approach. But now that she saw him read one of the books she loved dearly, she didn't even hesitate. She stood up to sit right next to him in the table he took solo.

"Hi Christian! This is my favourite book," she exclaimed.

He stopped reading and this time he looked at her. His grey eyes met her blue ones and this was the first time she really saw his face. He wasn't a beauty but he definitely wasn't a beast. He was somewhere in between. He was balanced.

She swore she saw him smile but when Carter and the other bullies threw another balled up paper at his face, Christian's eyes flashed a look of hurt and the potential smile faltered.

"Nerd!"

"Loser!"

"Frying pan face!"

They called him names and Ana's breath hitched when she saw how his hands turned into fists, showing veins that almost popped out of too much pain.

He breathlessly said, "Excuse me" before walking out of the library.

Then, the bewildered Ana impulsively screamed at the bullies, "You didn't have to do that!"

"Shhh!" the librarian got angry as her voice echoed across the room.

"Hush hush, Miss Perfect," Carter said while laughing.

Ana sighed and felt bad for Christian.

 **-page break-**

The next day, Ana and Kate are eating lunch in the cafeteria. Kate was busy putting on a pink shade lipstick while Ana ate her fries. Instead of dipping fries on the ketchup, she dipped it down the ice cream. She knew that she had always been odd.

From across the table, Ana stared at Christian who was now reading the middle part of the book. He was focusing too much that he didn't eat his lunch.

"See you later in the bathroom, Christian! You're gonna stay here overnight at school," Carter said loud enough for the entire cafeteria to hear. Yes, his friends and some students were laughing but it sounded like a threat.

"You're gonna get locked down tonight," added one of the bullies.

Ana saw how Christian's fingers intensely shook that he could almost let go of the book. That's when she decided she couldn't take it anymore.

She grabbed Kate's plate of spaghetti as she marched her way towards them.

"Hey! My lunch!" Kate complained.

Ana then plunged the pasta to Carter's face and everyone in the cafeteria was stunned. There was a moment of silence before everybody laughed. The entire student body laughed. Ana was frozen when Carter looked so embarrass with the spaghetti and tomato sauce spread all over his face. Then, his friends, the fellow bullies, laughed too.

Ana only laughed when Christian did.

Humiliated, Carter walked out of the cafeteria.

Christian and Ana almost said a word to each other but when the school bell rang, they went off to class instead.

 **-page break-**

Ana scolded herself in her head the following day. Why did she leave her wallet in her room? And why was Kate not in school of all days?

She was sitting all on her own, eyes looking all around. She's too hungry but too prideful to ask for someone's help.

Then, she heard an angelic voice saying, "Mind if I join you?"

She looked up and she saw Christian Grey smiling at him. It amazed her how she never noticed how those grey eyes sparkled beneath the thick glasses. He sat across her and slid the cup he bought for her.

Ana can't stop her smile when she saw that the cup had an ice cream dipped with fries.

"So you are a fan of the book, huh?"

"Yes, yes, yes!"

They talked about the "Sunflowers by the Coast" series and how they thought it was the most magical realm. Then, the topic moved towards the newest comic book available and how they dreamed of Iron Man to be a motion picture.

"I want Robert Downey Jr. to be Iron Man. I think he'd be a good fit," Christian expressed.

Ana argued, "No, I don't think so. Tom Cruise would do just fine."

That's when they talked about movies, comic books, classic movies, and the places they wanted to go to.

And when Christian bit the fries with ice cream coated on it, he exclaimed, "This is fantastic!"

That's when Ana knew that she found her best friend.


End file.
